The faithful present at the Mass celebrated by Pope Leo XIV at the Volkswagen Arena in Istanbul on Saturday share their excitement and express their belief that his visit is a message of peace and unity for all.
As Pope Leo evoked in his homily the three bridges that today cross the Bosphorus Strait and encouraged the faithful to build bridges in their own lives that promote unity and peace, a mosaic of people of all different nationalities and confessions was listening, as they participated in the Mass at the Volkswagen Arena in Istanbul on Saturday, November 29.
Can Sancar came with a group of 10 people of different religions and travelled 2 hours from the south of Türkiye to attend the event.
“We are Catholic, Armenian, Orthodox Syriac… We are very happy to participate together, all Christian people together,” he highlighted.
He added that they also followed on television the ecumenical prayer service with Pope Leo, Patriarch Bartholomew I, and other Christian representatives the day before at Iznik to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea.
He said it was “a special and historic” moment for Christians in Türkiye.
Can Sancar, standing, with the group of Christians
Nicholas and Yigit Bilge, 32 and 17 years old, respectively, and both volunteers at the Mass, expressed the same feeling.
“It would be a shame to just get here for the Mass, watch, and leave. This is a historic moment for us Christians in Türkiye, so we decided to volunteer and help the community,” said Yigit, as he stood next to Nicholas, both of them wearing matching white hoodies with the papal journey’s logo on them.
A visit to promote peace
Nicholas is Iranian and Catholic but has been living in Türkiye for several years. He works as a schoolteacher in a town 16 hours away by car, so he took a plane to Istanbul to be present.
“I couldn’t sleep for the last two nights because of my excitement,” he said, sharing that he had also seen the Pope at the Jubilee of Youth in August.
For Yigit, Pope Leo’s visit could be summarized in one word: peace. “We really think that the Pope is the only person who talks about peace today,” he reflected.
Nicholas and Yigit Bilge, volunteers during the Pope’s Mass
“The other message would be the word ‘love’,” emphasized Nicholas. “It is a commandment in the Bible that we have to love our neighbours, and Türkiye is a society where we have to know how to live with our neighbours, as they have different beliefs.”
For Tamar Karasu Mayoglu, a Turkish woman belonging to the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church and who works for the Bible Society, the Pope’s visit also represents a call for peace in these troubled times.
“It’s difficult to find the words to express our feelings, but we are really happy that he made this trip; it’s a really big message to all Christians and to the world about peace and reconciliation.”
She shared that she had also seen the Pope at his meeting with the Catholic community at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit on Friday and was able to give him a book about an ecumenical symposium she organized about the Council of Nicaea.
Tamar Karasu Mayoglu
Being brothers and sisters
Celine Guilavogui, a 23-year-old Catholic from Guinea who is studying in Istanbul, shared that she would have never expected to get to meet the Pope in Türkiye of all places.
“I know that the roots of Christianity also originate in part in Türkiye, but today it is a majority-Muslim country. Seeing the Pope in Türkiye brings hope,” she said, adding she was excited to spend time with other Christians.
Celine Guilavogui
Paul and Sylvie Yabas instead travelled from France specifically to participate in the Pope’s visit.
Sylvie is Chaldean and lived in Türkiye until age 10. “We feel like we are receiving a special blessing. Pope Leo really brings hope and a message of peace and of love,” she said.
“In all the countries in the world, if we are Christians or Muslims or another religion, we are all brothers and sisters. I want the whole world to know this.”
Paul and Sylvie Yabas
Credit: Vatican News